Captain America: Savage Land
by Ray Battlemonger
Summary: Captain America goes to the Savage Land to capture two dinosaurs, but ends up using a good part of his time fighting Kraven.


Captain America: the Savage Land

Captain America swam to the Antarctic shore. He was wearing heavy clothing to keep him warm until he reached his destination: the Savage Land. Many Americans back home had pleaded with him to go here and bring back an ancient dinosaur. Captain America would have to have the permission of Ka-Zar, a Tarzan-style jungle man who lived with "extinct" animals such as Triceratops and Glyptodonts.

He needed a dinosaur for two reasons. One, to give a special blood sample to save the life of a man he knew, and two, to give to the scientific community for research.

The star-spangled hero stepped upon the shore, looked to see is he still had his food rations, and continued. He walked the whole thirteen miles to his destination, a base just a short ways from the jungle where his objective laid. Only two men seemed to be there. One, a man with a white beard, walked up Captain America and greeted him with surprise.

"What are you doing here? As far as I know there are no mutants or Nazis on this cold continent."

"I'm here because everyone wants me to bring back a creature from the Savage Land. I need some equipment so that it can survive the cold"

"Well, we do have a new cage with a heating system. I'll call James." The man turned and called for his partner to get the cage. In less than a minute he arrived. 'Do you need any guns, Captain?"

"No, I'm not here to go hunting. My shield will do just fine."

"Alright, suit yourself. We have a chopper. We'll fly you closer to your destination starting this evening. This time of year the sky's always bright."

The Allosaurus thudded its way among the trees and ferns. It had picked up the scent of a man, who seemed to be charging at him in turn. The tall figure leaped at the Theropod's throat, knocking it over despite his smaller size. The saurian creature, very much angered, hit its assailant back with its tail and leaped upon him, mouth open.

The unusually strong man rolled out of the way, got up, and climbed up a nearby tree. The Allosaurus looked up, growling and snarling ferociously. The man grabbed a vine and swung, kicking the predator in the head. He then let go and landed on its back, wrestling it to the ground. Out of his belt he pulled a knife, sticking it into the Allosaur's throat.

When the creature was subdued, the hunter stood up and cleaned his knife with a nearby fern. He was clad in the skins off various animals. His vest was made of a lion head and his pants of leopard fur. He wore many bands of his arms made of zebra or cheetah.

He was Sergei Kravinoff, better known to the world as Kraven the Hunter.

Captain America looked out the window. Soon he would jump out with a parachute. The driver started circling the chopper. "Alright, Cap, good luck. This is it." The side door opened and the crimefighter jumped out with a parachute. He and the driver waved goodbye to each other. When he landed he began his journey into the Savage Land.

He came to a slope, perfect for sledding. Sitting on his shield, he went downwards. He felt warmer as he reached the bottom. Taking off his extra clothing, he grabbed a tree limb and swung into a clearing, scattering some small rodents.

_Amazing. The climate here is warmer than the rest of the continent. No one has been able to explain it yet. And some of the vegetation looks strange._

Captain America proceeded with caution. He passed by a creek, where two duckbilled dinosaurs rested. One snapped some twigs with its beak as it ate some berries. In the water swam a Diploacus, an odd reptile with a moon-shaped head. Swift-footed Ornithomimuses raced each other the bank.

_Before I was trapped in ice, the conception was that dinosaurs were lumbering, cold-blooded beasts, continuously battling each other._

The masked man continued on his journey. He would observe the flora and fauna, and then find a pair of two small creatures to bring back to America.

Kraven sat on the branch of an enormous tree, rivaling those of the Redwood Forests of California. He studied a Brachiosaurus as it feasted on the high leaves. The Hunter was waiting for another ancient creature for him to battle. He got his wish

A Triceratops approached the lower growth. It had evidently strayed from the rest of its herd. Kraven pounced upon the horned reptile. He landed on its back and held on to it for a few minutes. He then somersaulted onto its head and grabbed the Triceratops's horns. It seemed Kraven was going to defeat the Ceratopsian when he scented something, a human.

The lion-clad hunter let go of his prey, which ran off bellowing. He swiftly crawled his way to a good lookout position and spotted a man with a shield: Captain America. Hatred and rage filled his eyes. He had seen Captain America. Did he know that Kraven was in the Savage Land? Well, if he ever found him out, he would become the next victim.

Captain America settled down for the night. His resting place was high up in a gigantic tree. The only thing that could reach this height were birds and swift, agile mammals. He laid back and listened to the unusual Savage Land sounds. Below, him the heads of Brachiosaurs grazed on the leaves. He was quite enjoying himself when something caught his eye. A human shape passed the bright moon.

The star-spangled hero was curious, and he himself swung to the spot. He saw a temple shaped like an ape head, and entering it was Kraven the Hunter. Captain America grimaced. It was an international law that no hunting was permitted in the Savage Land due to its rare inhabitants. The blue-clad figure rushed into the mouth of the ape head.

Sure enough, Kraven's base was full of dinosaur-skin trappings and strange fur rugs. Before he could investigate some more, a long cord wrapped around his legs and he was pulled to the floor. A powerful figure leaped towards him, feet first, hitting the avenger in the head and rolling onto his feet a couple of yards away from him.

"So, Captain America, you dare invade my sanctuary. I'm sorry to say that I can't let you leave alive, less you give away my whereabouts."

Kraven stood above Captain America, spear in hand. He thrust at the superhero, who managed to roll out of the way and deliver a powerful kick in the stomach. With a grunt the skin-clad hunter fell back. As he got up, his opponent smashed into him with his shield.

"Surrender, Kraven."

"Surrender?" said Kraven mockingly, gathering his strength. "I don't know the meaning of the word, to use a cliché." The, suddenly, the Russian roared, leaping upon the avenger, squeezing his head with his hands. He kneed him in the groin and, acting in anger and pain, Cap flipped him over, letting him land on a stuffed wolf.

Kraven was about to be kicked into the ground, but he quickly recovered and hit Captain America in the head with his right fist. He grabbed a net and trapped his foe. Using his shield, the good guy cut open the trap before Kraven could finish him off. Grabbing the hero's hand, he did his own flipping move, smashing the star-spangled man into the wall. He smirked and opened his mouth to speak.

"I was here in the Savage Land before, but I was driven out by the accursed Ka-Zar. I am tired of being driven from every country by you and your kind." The hunter emphasized this by giving Captain America a barrage of hard-hitting blows.

He lassoed the captain and pulled him towards his feet. Once he was there, he stomped on him. The man started pounding his worthy foe and soon blood filled his hands. Captain America was bleeding, his uniform hopelessly torn. His shield was separated from him.

_Got to get my shield._ A leg pushed into his back as he crawled. _Almost there_/ He reached out for the shield as Kraven started twisting his leg. _Got it!_ He threw the shield at the villain, sending him flying into some of his trophies. He got up with some effort and used his magnetic glove to get his bouncing shield back. Kraven pounced on him, but he punched hard, unbreakable, metal. He yelped in pain and held his bleeding hand.

"You'll pay for that, Captain America. I can defeat a bull Triceratops!' He rushed towards Cap, who replied "But a Triceratops doesn't have brains, and a man does," and he showed his knowledge of judo move on the hunter, landing him hard on the floor behind him. Kraven did a double-kick, hitting the hero with full force in the stomach. Captain America was exhausted, he could barely keep up with his Russian opponent's blows.

He heard an imitation cry of a lion as Kraven charged again. He struggled to get out of the way in time, and did so. Kraven missed and received a nasty surprise. Expecting to hit the captain, he stumbled when he whipped by his target. He couldn't stop himself and he went running Into an Ankylosaurus shell stuck to the wall. The hunter's body was pierced by the spikes on the shell and he fell backwards, dead.

Captain America returned to the U. S., carrying with him two Compsognathuses, small chicken-sized reptiles that growled at their captor every time he came near them. The star-spangled hero was well received, and the two dinosaurs were put in a scientific institute to see what kind of place they would have in the Washington D. C. Zoo and the sick person got his dinosaur blood. Cap cleaned his shield, getting it ready for any new adventures he might embark on.


End file.
